The latest sci-fi film from District 9 director Neill Blomkamp, Chappie, claimed first place at a quiet Friday box office, but only took in $4.5 million. This is less than half of what Blomkamp’s previous film, Elysium, took in its first day in 2013, and noticeably lower than Jupiter Ascending‘s opening of $6.3 million last month. It may finish out the weekend with less than Jupiter Ascending‘s disastrous $18.3 million. Is this a bad sign for the director who was just handed the keys to Fox’s venerable Alien franchise?
Meanwhile, Unfinished Business is the latest bomb on Vince Vaughn‘s resume, having pulled in only $1.8 million on Friday.
READ OUR REVIEW: Unfinished Business Doesn’t Close the Deal
On a brighter note, director John Madden‘s The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel earned a respectable $2.7 million, despite playing on fewer than 1,600 screens, less than half of Chappie‘s wide release. The sequel, reuniting Madden with stars Judi Dench, Maggie Smith and Bill Nighy, obviously plays to an older crowd, and should do fairly well for itself over the weekend.
Last weekend’s #1 film, Focus, came in second on Friday with $2.9 million, while Kingsman: The Secret Service, in its fourth week of release, continued its impressive hold by pulling in $2.2 million, good enough for fourth place.
via Box Office Mojo
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